If preserve formatting isn't working (and there really is some formatting to preserve), how you get to the import options dialog won't matter. You might want to try trashing your preferences. See Replace Your Preferences

There's no way to predict when prefs will become corrupt, so please do try that.

Attachments are disabled so you must post a link to a file hosted on some other system. One way to do that, if you don't have your server, is to use YouSendIt.com to send the file to yourself, then copy and paste the link here.

I deleted the prefs, reopened IDD (reset import options) and tried to PASTE or PLACE from RTF file. Didn't work. Then I saved my .odt file as OpenOffice (.docx), and I was able to PLACE with formatting. IDD does not "see" the OOo (.odt) file, so I cannot attempt to PLACE that. Looks like I chose the wrong open source suite. LibreOffice is apparently not compatible with IDD.

I am a volunteer layout person for a theatre, and now I must decide between a switch to OpenOffice or purchase a new version of MS Office. It looks like Word is more compatible with IDD.

ID should have no problems with RTF from ANY application. I don't know how many users there are importing from OpenOffice/LibreOffice, but we don't hear a lot of problems, which makes me think the issue is something else on your system.

I have "All Information..." selected (radio button) in ID Clipboard prefs, and I just tried to PASTE text with italic titles from Mac Mail, and italics did not come thru. I then did the same thing on the old computer with CS3, pasting from the same email, and what should have been italic was not, but it was pink shaded--so I knew it was a font problem and when I changed font to Arial, the italics showed.

Something is not right in my SS5.5. I need to be able to paste with formatting.

I just tried a copy/paste from my website into frames in CS3 and 5.5, and the same thing happened: OK in CS3 and not in 5.5.

Followup to my copy/paste with formatting problem in CS5.5 [My "new system" is described in msg above 7/17.]

I just downloaded trial copy of MS Office, and copy/paste with formatting is works correctly from Word docs. I also opened files saved as RTF from LibreOffice, and formatted paste from them works also.

Caveat: installing MS Office messed up my LibreOffice files! Those files were fine yesterday; now I can OPEN them, but they're unreadable. After some panicked minutes, I SAVED them as TEXT out of LibreOffice and opened them in Word/Excel and they're fine.